bindhast.com : byop

BYOP (Build Your Own Privacy) is a toolkit. Judicious use of it can improve the efficiency of your e-mail activity, by improving bandwidth utilisation. It can also enhance the security of all your point-to-point communication, against attack by terrorists, crackers, and other unlawful and/or unscrupulous snoops.

BYOP is a collection of small and simple component modules. Each pair-of-users can easily combine these components into a unique concoction, so that even the creatrix of BYOP can't crack their mails.

BYOP is suitable for use by persons who are familiar with basic computer operation from the command-line, and who value efficiency and privacy sufficiently to invest some thought, time, and labour in their pursuit of it.

The entire BYOP sourcecode is provided. And it is small. So, it may also prove useful to persons desiring familiarity with assembly language programming, using the NASM assembler.

BYOP is not intended to be excessively `user-friendly', and we do not `package' it for any GUI. In fact, we do not really package it at all; each pair-of-users should perform the important task of combining the modules using scripts. This gives them a wide choice as to the manner of doing it. (See the sample scripts in this distro.) This policy is built on the premise that a privacy-compromise is inherent in trusting any pre-built package, or any privacy system `bundled' with a huge OS. Excessive standardisation and automation of privacy protection will allow the snoops to employ automated schemes of interception. BYOP, with its highly individualisable scripts, will at least complicate the work of the snoops by de-automating and `humanising' it.

The component modules in BYOP are briefly described below. Each module forms a sub-directory in your BYOP installation. More detailed description will be found within each module after installation on your machine.

2. aavaazg is a utility for improving bandwidth utilisation whenever you attach a pcm-coded sound file with your e-mail. This is achieved by multiplexing(LSB) a message, or any other small file (e.g., a list of the sound cuts in the sound file), with the .wav file itself. So now, the user sends only one file (a .wav file), instead of two files (the .wav file PLUS the message file). Not all .wav file formats are suitable; aavaazg can currently use simple, uncompressed, 8/16 bit, mono/stereo files. (The <data> chunk must follow immediately after the <fmt> chunk.)

4. makrahzg is a programme-generating module. It will quickly create a matched pair of small coding-and-decoding programmes. A large number of such matched pairs are possible. Each pair-of-users can easily choose which of those possible pairs they want to create and use.

5. commonfg is a directory containing files needed by the other modules. The Network Assembler, NASM v0.98, is included in this module. NASM will be needed for generating executables from assembly language source programmes.

6. smplscrg is a directory containing sample bash-scripts. These simple examples demonstrate the kind of variability and versatility available to each pair-of-users, through combinations of the four modules taaschg, aavaazg, tussvirg, and rahzg.

These samples are only for informational purposes and for testing. They should not be overused, in their present form, for real communication purposes. Rather, each pair-of-users should study these scripts, and then create their own unique scripts for their own use.

The bash-scripts mentioned above form the `secret key' for communication among each particular pair-of-users. They will need a means of securely exchanging their new scripts. We have now developed a separate, self-contained, keyless protocol for this purpose. This protocol, called `keylilla', is also GPL'd. It is available, as an item for download, at http://www.bindhast.com/keylilla.htm